Chain guide

Abstract

There is provided a chain guide that reduces a space occupied by the chain guide in an engine room while maintaining required strength, rigidity, and durability with a simple configuration, reduces the number of manufacturing steps and the waste of a material, does not require a structure that permits an error, prevents increases in vibration and noise during use, and reduces the burden of a maintenance operation. The chain guide has a guide shoe and a base member that reinforces the guide shoe, and an attachment portion includes an attachment member that is provided separately from the guide shoe and the base member and can be fixed to at least one of the guide shoe and the base member or both of the guide shoe and the base member.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A chain guide, comprising:
 a guide shoe that slides and guides a traveling chain; 
 a base member that reinforces the guide shoe along a chain traveling direction; 
 at least one attachment member that is provided with an attachment hole, the attachment member being a rigid member having a thin sheet-shape fixing piece and a thin sheet-shape attachment portion together forming an L-shape with a plane of the thin sheet-shape fixing piece being transverse to a plane of the thin sheet-shape attachment portion, wherein the thin sheet-shape attachment portion is provided with the attachment hole and the attachment hole has a center axis extending transverse to the chain traveling direction without passing through said guide shoe or base member; 
 the thin sheet-shaped attachment portion is provided separately from the guide shoe and the base member and integrally fixed via the thin sheet-shaped fixing piece to at least one of the guide shoe and the base member or both of the guide shoe and the base member. 
 
     
     
       2. The chain guide according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the guide shoe is formed of a synthetic resin material, and the base member and the attachment member are formed of a metal material. 
 
     
     
       3. The chain guide according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the fixing piece is integrally fixed to at least one of the guide shoe and the base member or both of the guide shoe and the base member by welding. 
 
     
     
       4. The chain guide according to  claim 3 , wherein
 the fixing piece is formed to hold at least one of the guide shoe and the base member. 
 
     
     
       5. The chain guide according to  claim 3 , wherein
 at least one of the guide shoe and the base member or both of the guide shoe and the base member are formed to hold the fixing piece. 
 
     
     
       6. The chain guide according to  claim 1 , wherein
 one of the attachment portion and the base member has a fixing hole, and the other of the attachment portion and the base member has a fixing protrusion that is inserted into the fixing hole. 
 
     
     
       7. The chain guide according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the attachment member is integrated with the guide shoe when the guide shoe is manufactured. 
 
     
     
       8. The chain guide according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the attachment member is formed by combining a plurality of components. 
 
     
     
       9. The chain guide according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the base member is formed from a thin sheet-shaped material, and has a bead. 
 
     
     
       10. The chain guide according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the attachment portion has a bead. 
 
     
     
       11. The chain guide according to  claim 1 , wherein
 said attachment hole extends through said attachment portion and is configured to receive a mounting bolt. 
 
     
     
       12. The chain guide according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the attachment member is formed from a single, bent, thin sheet of material. 
 
     
     
       13. The chain guide according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the attachment member is formed from a single, bent, thin sheet of material. 
 
     
     
       14. A method of making a chain guide, comprising:
 providing a guide shoe that is configured to slide and guide a traveling chain; 
 providing a base member that is configured to reinforce the guide shoe along a chain traveling direction; 
 selecting at least one rigid attachment member that is separate from the guide shoe and the base member and that includes an attachment portion having an attachment hole and a fixing piece; 
 integrally fixing the at least one attachment member via the fixing piece to at least one of the guide shoe and the base member or both of the guide shoe and the base member; and 
 further including providing the attachment member as a rigid member, wherein the fixing piece is a thin sheet and the attachment portion is a thin sheet and wherein the fixing piece and the attachment portion together form an L-shape with a plane of the thin sheet-shape fixing piece being transverse to a plane of the thin sheet-shape attachment portion, and wherein the attachment hole has a center axis extending transverse to the chain traveling direction without passing through said guide shoe or base member. 
 
     
     
       15. The method of making a chain guide according to  claim 14 , wherein said selecting at least one rigid attachment member includes selecting a shape or a material of the at least one attachment member. 
     
     
       16. The method of making a chain guide according to  claim 14 , wherein the step of integrally fixing includes welding. 
     
     
       17. The method of making a chain guide according to  claim 14 , further including forming the attachment member, the base member and the guide show together after said integrally fixing. 
     
     
       18. The method of  claim 14 , further including forming the attachment member from a single, bent, thin sheet of material. 
     
     
       19. A chain guide, comprising:
 a guide shoe that slides and guides a traveling chain along a traveling guide portion of the guide shoe; 
 a base member that reinforces the guide shoe along a chain traveling direction; 
 at least one attachment member that is provided with an attachment hole, the attachment member being a rigid member having a thin sheet-shape fixing piece and a thin sheet-shape attachment portion together forming an L-shape with a plane of the thin sheet-shape fixing piece being transverse to a plane of the thin sheet-shape attachment portion, wherein the plane of the sheet shaped fixing piece is generally parallel to a surface of the traveling guide portion of the guide shoe, and wherein the thin sheet-shape attachment portion is provided with the attachment hole and the attachment hole has a center axis extending transverse to the chain traveling direction without passing through said guide shoe or base member; 
 the thin sheet-shaped attachment portion is provided separately from the guide shoe and the base member and integrally fixed via the thin sheet-shaped fixing piece to at least one of the guide shoe and the base member or both of the guide shoe and the base member.